Branson, MO

We arrived in Branson Missouri late Thursday afternoon and set up the Coach. Traffic in the City was busy and after a quick self guided tour we came to the conclusion that our preconceived vision of Branson was far from reality. We were expecting a compact town with rows of theaters lined along the main street. Instead, we found four separate "routes" winding through the hilly country surrounding the original "main" street. Huge theaters are interspersed with old and new buildings, commercial areas, real estate offices, discount ticket stands, and lots of vacant property for sale. There is possibly every type of entertainment one might be interested. It is family friendly with activities for kids and parents.

We returned home that evening and began planning our weekend. On Friday Sue got hit with a minor case of flu. It slowed her down and we stayed close to home. On Saturday she felt better and we ventured out that evening to see a GREAT play at an outstanding Theater. The play, Noah,was put on by a Christian group in a huge theater. While we have seen some Broadway Plays with better scripting, we have not seen a more elaborate sets. The theater held 2000 people and the Ark took up both sides and the center. It had hundreds of animated electronic animals on three levels of the ark. I wish I had a picture, but alas, no photography in the theater.

On Sunday Steve went to Church at the College of the Ozarks. It is an amazing four year College that is better know as "Hard Work U". The college was established by a minister who realized that a large portion of the children in the Ozark area did not have an opportunity to attend high school. A group of business men built a residential high school that eventually ended up becoming a college. Tuition was impossible for most of the graduates so the college designed a program that allowed the students to pay tuition by working 20 hours per week at the school. Students are also allowed to work during the summer to defer room and board during the school year. It is an interesting story you can find on the internet. The campus is beautiful, and kept up by the students. They also were involved in the building of the "Chapel" which looks a lot more like a Cathedral.

On Sunday night we went to the Oak Ridge Boys show which was a combination of news songs, gospel music, songs recognizing and honoring our men and women in the arm forces, and Elvira, the signature song. Interesting enough, the four guys have been together since the 60's and two joined the group in the 70's. They are not the "original" Oak Ridge Boys as the group began in the 1940's (when Frank was just a Kid) as entertainment for the workers sequestered in Tennessee while working on the Manhattan Project.

Monday we went up to the site of "The Shepard of the Hills" which became famous after the writing of the book of the same name, and the movie starring John Wayne. We took a tour of the grounds, went up in a tower that overlook much of the valley, and bought tickets for the outdoor theater show tonight. Sue energy level is picking up so the ten mile hike tomorrow may still be on. (NOT).





We leave in the morning headed west towards California. We are certain that adventure is awaiting us as we travel.

Sues Contribution to the Blog

Hi, this is Sue doing the blog tonight. We are at a rest stop somewhere north of St Louis. Steve is sitting here with his eyes glazed over. We are stopped at a rest stop somewhere north of St. Louis. We had quite a day driving. We left Milwaukee this morning. A man who worked on the motor home yesterday suggested a “non freeway/ non toll way” to Branson and printed us mapquest directions. What I shouldn’t have done was turn on Hillary (our infamous GPS) and also be looking at the map. Well the three didn’t coincide. We traveled for about 2 ½ hour over pretty, but very country roads, detours, etc. Finally we reached the freeway we would have gone on. We turned south, but we happened to look at the northbound sign and it said “Milwaukee—37 miles”!!!! Oh well, the drive was pretty. We headed south and ended up in Springfield, Illinois (that’s the capitol isn’t it?) about 5 PM and in an impressive thunder storm! However we are settled for the night and have about 4 hours to go until we reach Branson tomorrow. We have tickets to see a new musical, “Noah, the Musical” and to see the Oak Ridge Boys. Well I better go see if Steve is still alive. I’m sure you’ll be glad to hear from him tomorrow.

Milwaukee

Our trip from the Falls (Niagara) to Milwaukee was basically uneventful other than the toll booths.They charge by the axle in most cases. I felt sorry for our plight until I saw the truck carrying 8 new cars on it's trailer. That had to be expensive! (Just joking). We are settled down at the State Fair Grounds outside of Milwaukee. It is a large parking lot with full hookups and very level parking spots. We have been here three days, and will leave tomorrow.
We drove back to northern Illinois to visit Steve's Cousin who he had not seen for 40 years. She lives in a cute cottage on one of many little lakes in Lake County. The address was a little challenging as there are many streets around many lakes with the same names. Our final, and by far best GPS was a phone call to her and street by street directions. Much nicer, and never telling us to "recalculate". The we had a great time, and talked for hours about family and old memories of the time we spent together at family gathering.

Yesterday we had a great time with Sue's cousin in Milwaukee. We started the day with a great cup of coffee from a shop next to the Lake that had been a big pump house at the turn of the century. We then visited the Dead Scroll Exhibit at the Milwaukee Museum. It is not the touring exhibit that is traveling throughout the US. but a private collection of a number of different people and institutions. It was extremely interesting covering the discovery, the initial buying and selling of the artifacts, and the continued history of the Bible throughout history. The exhibit started with the question "What is the Bible" and featured a Gideon Bible Display.

After the Exhibit we went to Copps to have lunch. No, they didn't have coffee and doughnuts. Custard is a favorite desert and this was one of the best places to get it. We then went to a huge Botanical Park and enjoyed the walk and sites.

We ended our day with a wonderful dinner and evening with our friends. It was a great day, and hard to say goodbye to our family and friends.

We are head south to Branson, and then west. We anxiously await the continuation of this wonderful adventure.

Cape Cod to Niagara Falls and THE FALLS

We left Cape Cod early Tuesday morning to have the water reserve tank replaced in Boston. A small crack in the tank developed into a small hole causing water/coolant to escape. The part had to be special ordered and was fairly costly considering the size of the part. When we arrived at the truck repair shop in the middle of nowhere Boston, we discovered that they had ordered the wrong part and wanted us to stay another day so they could air express the correct part. A long discussion occurred which resulted in us leaving without the repair, and ultimately a patch job done 9by steve)until we could get the repair at our next stop. The patch appears to have worked so far, but we are carrying extra coolant until we get to the next available shop in Milwaukee.

By the time we finished the discussion in Boston, it was noon. Steve (me) set the GPS to avoid toll roads and major highways and the result was driving through downtown suburbs of Boston. The streets in places were extremely narrow, and some of the turns with our car behind us very challenging. We survived with no damage except frayed nerves. I think there were a lot of people wondering what we were doing driving down residential streets with the coach and car, and so where we. As we traveled out of the suburbs, and into the country the roads were two lane and very pretty. We wandered for miles through wooded hills, very small villages, farm areas, rivers, streams and school buses dropping off kids every three blocks. We arrived in Easthampton where our overnight stop was scheduled. It appeared that we were slated to go through downtown. We had been successful earlier in the day so we headed into town. About a block before going onto main street we noticed a bridge ahead with 10' clearance. Since the coach is 12'6" it didn't look like a good idea. We turned into a neighborhood and tr aveled parallel to main street looking for a way back to the main street finding that every road had a railroad overpass 10 feet or less. After some exploring, we back tracked and found a freeway entrance and headed east several miles until we were beyond the town. The GPS guided us to the campsite, and no bridges!! We reprogrammed the GPS allowing toll ways, and freeways for future travels when necessary. Other than that, the trip was uneventful.

We left early Wednesday morning and headed for I-90. After a hour of scenic country, small villages, and school bus picking up children for school, we found the on ramp to I-90. The lions share of travel was on I9 0, a toll way and unexceptional. When we finally turned off of I90 in Buffalo NY, the toll master looked up and said, 45.50. I was hoping he was showing me he could count in fives. No luck, that was the cost for traveling across the fine State of New York.

We traveled up to the campground on Grand Island, about 7 miles from the Falls. We are about a week ahead of the busy season, so the campground was relatively empty. We settled in and than took a quick trip to the falls for some reconnaissance. Most of the "features" were closed for the day, so we hike

d a little, and saw the falls from above, and returned back to the campsite awaiting a full day on Thursday.

And a full day it was!!

We arrived at the Falls around 10am, as our plan was to stay the entire day, and watch the lights at 9pm before we journeyed back to camp. We bought the passes that allow access to five of the most popular attractions including a IMax history show, The Maid of the Mist, The Falls Cave walk at the base of the American Falls, the aquarium, a cable car tour around the different sites in the park,and a natural history museum(that is only open on the weekend). The boat ride, and the caves are great opportunities to get up close and soaked. They do provide you with a plastic poncho and shower slippers. The weather was great, so the mist and water actually felt good.

To say that the falls were spectacular is like comparing the Grand Canyon to a draining ditch. Never have I experience the raw power of water cascading over the ledge. While it is not as high as Snoqualmie Falls, the shear volume is awesome. We walked on the trail at the base of the American Falls, took the boat next to Horse Shoe Falls (Canadian), and found tons of picture perfect views.

We walked across the bridge to Canada around 4pm to view the Falls from the Canadian Side, get dinner, and see the Falls lit up at night. We were not disappointed (except for dinner). We walked up a street just above the falls that was one of the most interesting, glitzy, touristy Streets we have seen thus far on this trip. As if the falls aren't enough, shops and attractions are in every building.

At 9ish, Canadian time huge spot lights from the Canadian side lit up the three falls. Initially it was just bright white pot lights, than the colors changed. Over the day Steve shot 600 pictures, a few of which are posted on the blog. Digital is so great. Shoot and sort.

We saw just about everything, and are now headed for Milwaukee to see a couple of cousins. It is great visiting with family, some of which we haven't seen for years. Another drive, another tollway, but a great adventure awaits us.

Scargo Lake and Tower, Cape Cod National Seashore, Provincetown, MA

Today was exercise day with a Lobster incentive. We started off with a short jaunt to the Scargo Tower above the Scargo Lake. I have included the legend to go with the pictures. It sounds a little fishy, but it adds to the ambiance.

"Once, the beautiful Princess Scargo, lived along the Dennis shores. She was part of the Bobuset tribe, lead by her father Sagem. One day, a brave young runner from a faraway tribe happened to espy the Princess. At once, the two fell madly in love.

To show his devotion, the brave gave the Princess a beautifully carved pumpkin, which he had hollowed out and filled with water. Four small silvery fish were inside. He promised to return to the Princess before the fish had fully grown.

The Princess adored her gift. She hollowed out a small pond in a clearing and returned every day. As the fish grew, the time apart from her beloved diminished. My Princess ->

The summer was long and dry, though. One morning, when she arrived at the pond, she found it dry. Three of the fish were dead. As she wept uncontrollably, her tears kept the one remaining fish alive.

Her grief greatly distressed her father. Sagem called a meeting at which it was decided a lake was needed for Princesses' fish. The strongest and most skilled brave was instructed to shoot an arrow. When it fell, the spot was marked. The brave shot 3 more arrows to mark the remaining boundaries for the lake. Then, squaws, using clam shells as shovels, dug a hole within the boundaries, which was then filled by fall rains.

The fish thrived in the lake and Princess Scargo resumed her wait for her lover. As promised, he returned before the fish had matured, and they were married soon after. They continued to live along the shore of Scargo Lake, where the descendants of the silvery fish-a token of love-still swim."

We walked the thirty some steps to the top of the tower and had a great view. Getting our exercise for the day, we felt much better and headed north towards Provincetown (at the tip of Cape Cod.

We found a secondary highway and traveled through a number of small towns. Our next stop was at the Cape Cod National Seashore. We bought a Season Pass, and try not to miss any of the National Parks. The park included several trails that you could hike including a 1.3 mile salt marsh pond. Apparently we turned left instead of right and treated ourselves to a little longer hike, but a very pretty view of the marshes , and the Ocean. Close to the finish of the trail was a shorter trail set up for visually impaired visitors that had a post and rope rail with a wooden stopper on the rope at a number of exhibits. The placards had braille encouraging the hikers to stop, listen, and touch a display. This was a unique project that I had never seen before in a park. We ended up walking 2 to 3 miles, but it was basically flat, and very pretty and we got some more exercise.

We continued up the coast arriving at Provincetown at 1pm. In town there was a huge Pilgrim memorial tower. The pilgrims on the Mayflower first landed at Provincetown BEFORE they travel to Plymouth Rock. It was not a planned stop, but one that was the result of the winds and a storm. They looked for a place to settle, and stayed for a short time before finishing their journey. They did encounter native americans and had a brief skirmish where they traded gunshots and arrows, but there were no recorded injuries as the marksmen and archers missed each other. The settlers eventually settled away from the camps, and later left the "island" because of weather. The first constitution was written at Provincetown in 1620 (called the Mayflower Compact).

In 1910 the community built a memorial and a tower to commemorate the first landing of the pilgrims in Provincetown. The tower is 252 feet high, and has 116 steps and 60 ramps in the interior that allows visitors a 360 degree view of Provincetown and the adjacent communities (including Boston some 45 miles across the bay). Advertised as an easy 10 minute hike we decided that we would hike up to the top. The view was worth our third hike in the same day. Returning down in to the main part of town Sue received her reward (bribe) of a lobster wrap at the wharf. The exercise didn't stop the stroll through the quaint downtown for people with every taste, and in some cases with no taste at all.

We finished our trip with a stop at a live lobster and fish market picking up one last lobster to go. They steamed it, and Steve cracked it at home. We will have a treat sometime today on our way out of Boston and headed west towards Niagara. Our legs feel better this morning.

Nantucket, MA

Our car is sitting in a Honda Dealership waiting for a tire replacement. We had to cancel the trip to spend the weekend with our family in New Hampshire. We decided to find our way down to the ferry to Nantucket and spend the day on the Island.

The hour boat ride was very relaxing and beautiful. The ferry was a catamaran and quickly got us to the island. It is a walkable quaint town so we opted for the self guided 4 mile walk of which we completed about 3 miles before we found a short cut back to down town. Many of the streets are cobblestone, nearly all the homes are big and old. The town was at one time the largest whaling village in the world.

Main Street had a mixture of art galleries, jewelers, seafood restaurants, and tourist shops. We treated our self to seafood that hadn't been frozen. Buildings and homes dated back into the 1700's, there were large churches, and parks. Many homes reflected the nautical background of the town and had "widow walks" on the roof. A tradition was to name the house with a placard above the door way. My favorite was "No Vu" on a house that was located behind a larger house.

It was a great day and other then the aching legs, we had a wonderful time. Tomorrow we pick up the car, and get ready for our westward journey starting on Tuesday.

Blog Post 50 and Counting....Washington DC to Cape Cod

We are in Cape Cod. Our trip started out rather interesting when we received a call from our son an Monday morning to discuss some last minute plans for our stay in Cape Cod/Boston. After some discussion he said that they has some last minute preparations for the flight on Tuesday, and had the Baseball tickets for Wednesday afternoons Baseball Game at Fenway Park. It suddenly dawned on me that we had not looked at our calendar close and thought we still had one more full day in DC before the two day trip to the Cape. Kevin thought I was kidding, and then realized I wasn't. We ended our conversation, and in one hour we were on the road towards Boston.

We spent our first night at a Walmart RV Parking Lot on Monday night. We were joined by three other RV's, including a fifth wheel, and several trucks. The parking was free until someone wandered into the store. It is amazing what a few "groceries" end up costing. It was a quiet area and next to a Mc Donalds. We drove most of Tuesday arriving at Cape Cod at the Rv Park. The drive was beautiful, and the first hills we had seen since New Mexico. The coach is still handling well and we hardly feel the car being towed behind us.

We settled in the ELS Camp Ground which is a combination RV Park and summer cottage park. The majority of the people staying arrive after Memorial Day so the park is not very full. They have a nice pool, but no water in it yet. It is a lot colder here than south.

On Wednesday we met up with our son, his girl friend, and our grandson in Boston for a mid day baseball game at Fenway Park. It is a grand old ball park with lots of character and characters. The tee-shirt of the day was " I have two favorite teams, the Red Socks and any team that beats the Yankees". Outside of the stadium we watched a guy get fired in the vending area after he and the boss disagreed about using a cell phone while cooking braut's. I don't know how to put the thick accent in the blog, but the conversation was very entertaining. The Socks nearly came back in the final innings, but the game was still fun. The seats were in the second row above the fence in right field with the promise of a home run ball. It didn't happen this time. Denali, our grand son's primary mission was to get a baseball, but alas, it did not happen this game. Tickets were responsible. Parking anywhere in the City was outrageous! Some lots were $50.00 and up.

Our first trip into Boston reminded me why we moved out of the City. It took us over an hour to get to the freeway, and another half hour to get out of the city. The trip home on non-traffic days is only about an hour and a half. Traffic is horrible and negotiating downtown Boston nearly impossible!!

People in Boston like their horns! Cabbies use there horns more often than their brakes. I am thinking about opening a business called quik lube and horn replacement. I know that they must need the horns fixed at least every 1000 miles or so. I just shrug, I am a tourist.

On Thursday we had Denali and found a cute 18 hour mini golf course. Grandma, Grandpa, and Denali played a round of golf before venturing to Boston for our second day to go with the gang to the beautiful New England Aquarium. We enjoyed walking around the multi-level exhibits with Denali. We decided to stay in town Thursday night with our son in a cute little place in Cambridge. I refused to attempt the drive back to the cape during rush hour. We ended up at the BBQ Ribs place walking distance from Kevin's rental place. The dinner was so huge that when they brought it to the table there was no room for plates to eat off. We put a dent in the food, and took another huge bag back home for a second dinner.

Today (Friday) we went to the Boston Science Center in downtown Boston with the gang. We finished the three floors by 3:30, and then headed back to the RV Park at peak rush hour. We are apparently are not quick learners.

We returned home, gas up the car, ran through the car wash, lost a tire air valve stem in the process, changed the flat tire helped by a kind police officer, took a picture and returned home. It is our second flat, but this one will require a valve stem replacement. It was our first encounter with the police, and a good one at that. I didn't know that they helped change tires, and perhaps if I wasn't hiding in the car, he may have made me change it. Or, maybe I looked a little old. What a nice boy he was.

We are off to another adventure tomorrow, with several more days in the New England before we start traveling west.

Last Day in DC

Parking is free in DC Metro Lots, and at the National Cathedral so we thought we would go out and experience driving into the Capital. We used our trip planner to get to the Cathedral Parking area, and then to a closer METRO lot to get to the Capitol Mall. The trip to church was easy and the extra time we had given ourselves was not needed, arriving almost an hour early. We walk around the building and through the gift shop.

The service was great. The Cathedral is "a church for national purposes called to embody God’s love and to welcome people of all faiths and perspectives. A unique blend of the spiritual and the civic, this Episcopal Cathedral is a voice for generous-spirited Christianity and a catalyst for reconciliation and interfaith dialogue to promote respect and understanding. We invite all people to share in our commitment to create a more hopeful and just world." The morning message was presented by a retired Baptist Minister. It was an interesting blend of the formality of the Episcopal lethargy and the enthusiasm of a southern baptist minister.

After the service we drove down a metro station and parked. We walked through the Sculpture park, and then completed the visit to the American History Museum. Our final adventure was to the museum of Natural Science. While we only completed two floors. We spent a fair amount of time in the gems and mineral displays including the Hope Diamond display. Sue comment to me that she liked the polished gems best. I'm a little concerned about which one(s) she is most interested in.

We returned home for mothers day dinner (a whopper cheese burger and fries) and watched a movie. Steve is so romantic.

Remember the Fountain of Youth Drink. Don't do it, it has some side effects after time.

Today we get ready to leave DC and head for Boston. Another adventured awaits.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and Smithsonian Museum Part 1

Today was a more somber day. We visited the Holocaust Memorial Museum and spent about four hours viewing the exhibits and multimedia presentations. It was a time to reflect for both of us. Steve's first job after he and Sue where married was at a print shop where half of the company (including his boss) were Jewish refugees from Poland. His boss was in Warsaw when it was locked down, and he managed to escape. His entire family died in the prison camp. We spent hours talking about the impact of the war. He had returned home to visit his family and was not on the registry. The last few years that Steve taught at the college a class on the Holocaust was presented in the spring. The instructor was able to bring in survivors from the camps who spoke to the students. Steve attended most of the lectures. The stories were incredible.

We then wondered over to the Smithsonian "Castle" to plan our attempt to see the museum. We probably will not beat the record of our daughter who saw the entire museum in 45 minutes when she was 18. We decided to start in the Museum of American History. There a three floors of exhibits. We finished 2 of them in 4 hours. We will return. The top floor shared the history of the birth and growth of our nation. Again we were reminded of the sacrifices that many before us made to make this country what it is today. The day was a great reminder of what others have done, and the impact that it has had on all of us. I also found a picture of the first type of house I remember living in.

The last exhibit was on the inauguration dresses of the first ladies. I found a bench.


We have become Bus/Subway experts. We are taking the car into DC today because parking is free. We will get the subway to the mall after church at the National Cathedral returning to the Smithsonian to finish history and then go to the natural science. Hopefully no no more fashion shows.

Washington DC - Days 1 and 2

After the white knuckle experience of driving down Pennsylvania Avenue, everything was a breeze! We parked the coach and the car in a beautiful Campground in College Park, Maryland and have now become two day experts at the bus/subway system. A metro bus picks us up at the campground and takes us to the subway station about 15 minutes away. We hop on the subway and can take it to any one of 10 or 15 stops at various places in DC. We have been on four of the 5 lines (red, blue,green and orange and have not ended up lost, or going the wrong way. I suspect that by the time we leave we will be more skillful than lucky.

On Wednesday we went to the Metro Station in downtown DC. There we followed our practice of picking a City Tour tourist package that put us on a open air double decked bus. This gives us a chance to snap pictures while getting familiar with the geography and history of the neighborhoods. It also allows for an opportunity to "hop on , hop off" for the entire day (in our case 2 days.) We did the entire route, 28 stops, with out exiting, and then after lunch, we had chosen where we would stop. We learned to duck when traveling through tree lined residential streets.

Our big adventures included the National Cathedral on the a hill above Capital Hill. It took several hours to go through the sections that are open to the public. The craftsmanship, the artist, and the private funds that were used to build the Cathedral were breath taking. Neither words nor pictures could do it justice.


We then went to Arlington Cemetery to see the eternal flame at Kennedy's grave site, the small grave sight of Robert Kennedy, The Robert E. Lee homestead. Itwas transferred to the United States along with his estate that became Arlington Cemetery during the Civil War prohibiting him to reclaim his property after the war.

We finished our day observing the ceremony at the tomb of the unknown solider and than walked back through the cemetery to call it a day.

Thursday we returned to DC to get a personal tour of the Capital Building courtesy of our Congressman, and friend Rick Larsen. We were greeted by a young staffer who spent 2 hours with us in the Capital Building including a walk through the tunnels from the Offices to the Visitors Center. The tour was very personal, and again we were the only ones on this tour with the staffer allowing for lots of questions and answers that you don't get in a big group. We finished the tour back in Congressman Larsen's office and a short time later he came in from voting to "meet and greet" us. He needed to get back to the "floor" for another vote so he led us with an intern back to the Capital Building through some passage that the intern had not been through. He had secured no wait tickets to go up into the House and Senate Gallery's to observe. The house was debating the Energy Star Rating Cash rebate initiative but not voting on it. The Senate only had two Senators in the room and they where speaking on the issue of "Fanny and Freddy" and the need for regulation. The rest of the Senators were not present and the room was pretty empty. It was a great experience, and we both enjoyed the afternoon. We went down to eat in the basement of the Capital Visitors Center, and than back to Congressman Rick Larsen's office to retrieve cameras, cell phones, and other things that are not allowed in the Senate or House of Representatives Gallery.

We jumped back on the bus to see where else we wanted to go and decided HOME. Tomorrow either we will head back to see some of the Smithsonian Museum or Sue will take a break and Steve will go back for a self-misguided photographic tour walking from The Capital to Arlington Cemetery.

You will see.